Hint

Answer

These are all the animals swallowed by the old lady in the nursery rhyme:

- There was an old lady who swallowed a fly. I don't know why she swallowed a fly. Perhaps she'll die!

The rhyme continues with the following animals:

- She swallowed a spider to catch the fly.
- She swallowed a bird to catch the spider.
- She swallowed a cat to catch the bird.
- She swallowed a dog to catch the cat.
- She swallowed a goat to catch the dog.
- She swallowed a cow to catch the goat.

The rhyme concludes with:

- There was an old lady who swallowed a horse. She's dead, of course.

As for the title, a course is part of a meal, which hints at the old lady's eight-course meal of animals.Hide

LOL... I solved it even without knowing the rhyme! Never heared of it, but just noticed that the animals were getting larger and I was thinking about a non-exotic animal that could be larger than a cow!

Heard of it but wasn't very familiar. Found myself wondering what kind of animal would chase or eat a cow and couldn't think of one. Wasn't even sure I was on the right track since cows don't really chase goats either.
Great teaser!

I'm usually not so wild about teasers that depend on a certain reference, because then it's harder for most people to get them ... but this one worked out well, even a little too easily, because the progression up through animals obviously goes from cow to horse in way more than one childrens' song or story. The "of course" is also always a dead giveaway.

I think we need to be a little more careful about teasers like this, in that it all hinges on knowing one particular nursery rhyme. There's already been one comment I've seen by someone who, since they've grown up in a non-English-speaking country (and there are quite a few of those out there) has never heard of it.
I can't support a teaser like this one, where it's an absolute gimme if you've heard the rhyme, and practically impossible if you haven't. If there's no middle ground (ie if you can't nut it out simply through problem solving), then there's something wrong...

Castle, I'm very familiar with the nursery rhyme, but I didn't get the answer correct. I don't think it's a gimme if you know the nursery rhyme, but I get what you're saying about the fact that getting it right depends on knowing the rhyme. I still enjoyed the teaser, even if I didn't get the answer.

The nursery rhyme did not come to me, so using my brain, as one might in a brain teaser, I came up with 'human' since many of us eat cow products just as a spider eats a fly. I saw others were also thinking along those lines, so I don't even care if my answer is not "the" answer; it's the thought process that's important.

I thought of other animals that could possibly finish the farm animal series, because thats what the listing or series appeared to be, all animals found on a farm. Therefore, the next animal within the series would have been a Pig or Chicken. Yes, Yes, Horses can be a farm animal, but rarely. Decent teaser. At least, better than the Teaser I created, even though she did not create this Teaser, she just rearranged its original format.
Good Work

If I remember right, There was a rhyme for every verse: I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Just jumped up beside her and swallowed the spider,
Imagine that! She swallowed the cat,
( I don't remember the dog rhyme )
Just opened her throat and swallowed the goat,
I don't know how she swallowed the cow,
Then the horse one that's in the explanation. Does anyone remember the dog verse?
Thank you for the trip down memory lane, it was fun, and perfectly appropriate for an English speaking website that states as much in the rules when you sign up.

Great response Castle! If you don't know the rhyme it is likely you will not get the answer. To those who figured it out because each one got larger, I don't believe flies and spiders are much different in size. Some house flies are small while a blow fly is large. Some spiders are large while some are very small, so that did not work for me. To those who liked it...glad you did!

While I got the answer right away, I do have to agree with those who said that this teaser either one you know or you don't.
OF course the same can be said for the math or science ones, if you are not familiar with the underlying mathematical or scientific principle, you'll never get it.

I remembered the song from many years ago. It was fun to see if I could remember all of the verses!
To those who think it not fair to someone who wasn't familiar with the rhyme: I seldom watch TV or go to movies. If knowledge of the latest in songs, movie stars, etc. etc., is necessary to solve any particular teaser, then it must be unfair to me to publish that teaser!!
I enjoyed this one anyway!

I vaguely remembered there being a poem like this so I googled it for the answer. For whatever the reason, the first version of the poem I read made no mention of a goat. So although I guessed the correct answer, I wondered if there would be a tricky twist involved. I have since found another version of the poem with the "goat" in it.